Parting Ways
by Mustardlover16
Summary: Emily has finally made her decision to move. Now comes the hard part: telling her friends goodbye. A small series set at JJ's wedding depicting what Emily says to each of her teammate-no, family members. In honor of Emily coming back this season!


Music was softly floating across the expansive back yard, richly decorated for the occasion. Trees were hung with wispy white drapings which danced softly in the fortunate breeze. Christmas lights and lanterns strung along the back patio and the gondola gave the distinct impression of spirit and frivolity.

Emily couldn't have imagined a more perfect setting for her friend's wedding. It had been a long time coming, but she suspected that both JJ and her new husband felt that this was well worth the wait. Emily couldn't be happier for JJ. Though she loved working at the BAU, she would be the first to admit that the job did have its drawbacks; for the members of the BAU team, relationships outside work were hard to swing but, at least for tonight, it seemed that their very own former media and communications liaison had beaten the odds (and, Emily hoped, would continue to do so).

Smiling to herself, Emily did something she rarely did. She put away her profiling gaze-the one which picked up on behavioral, vocal and gesticular minutia and organized such details into patterns for her to interpret- and let her eyes wander. Rather than profiling her surroundings she took this rare moment to absorb every detail for an entirely different reason-she wanted to remember this moment forever.

This was indeed a rare occasion. There were very few moments, scenes or people that Emily had seen while on the job that she wanted burned into her brain (although that didn't seem to matter to her brain much, as it insisted on burdening her with some of the most grotesque images in her sleep). No, for once Emily wanted every single second to be perfectly recallable. This-this scene set like a fairy tale before her- was something she wanted to remember forever and she reckoned that she'd earned the right to it-to one bloodless, serial killer-less evening of celebration with her friends.

In the corner, under a large oak tree sat Spencer Reid, entertaining Jack and Henry with his signature magic tricks. Smiling to herself, Emily took a few steps towards the boys, so as to be in earshot. She could just hear Reid saying, "Magic is everywhere, you just have to know where to look…" And with a snap of his fingers he requested that both boys check their pockets. Emily didn't even try to fight the grin that snuck its way onto her face and the squeals of delight as the both boys found a pair of chocolate kisses in their small suit pants pockets. Giving each boy a loving rub on the top of the head, Reid stood and strode toward Emily.

Reid stretched his hand out to Emily, who reached out to meet him. He placed a single Hershey's kiss in her hand with a sheepish, dorky sort of smile. Emily smiled brightly back, "Ah, Dr. Reid, you never cease to amaze me."

"Nor you me." He smiled softly at her. With a glance over his shoulder, he watched couples dancing across the temporary dance floor which Rossi had had installed for the occasion. JJ and Will were doing more of a walking cuddle than a dance, both wearing sweet, contented smiles. Rossi and Hotch seemed to be playfully contending for best dancer, with their respective partners, Straus and Beth. The men alternated between twirling and dipping their partners and 'accidentally' shoulder checking each other. Morgan and Garcia could be seen flirting and dancing flamboyantly, untroubled (and in fact possibly enjoying) the fact that Penelope's ex-boyfriend and his date could easily hear what they were saying.

Turning back to Emily, Reid offered his slim, long fingered hand to Emily once more. "Would you care to dance, Emily?"

Nodding, Prentiss cheerfully obliged. "I would be honored, Spencer."

Spencer awkwardly but gentlemanly allowed her to slip her arm into his as he lead her to the dance floor. Though he wasn't much for physical contact, his friends were his one major exception. Upon reaching the dance floor, he placed one hand neutrally on her waist, while clasping Emily's right hand in the other. They swayed to the music which had clearly been selected by Rossi, not that anyone was complaining.

As she spun and twirled, head pressed close to Reid's, dancing in silent companionship, she glanced again at her friends, her family really, and decided. She had to tell them-and she had to start with Reid.

Since she had first met Reid, she had felt a certain loyalty to him, and a certain urge to protect him (she knew that the whole team shared this urge with her) that she hadn't felt as strongly with the rest of the team. It wasn't that she saw Reid as weak-in fact, she thought the exact opposite-but she could never stop herself from the almost maternal instinct she sometimes had when Spencer was hurting, whether physically or emotionally. And at the same time, Emily had always seen Reid as a confidant, someone she could count on to listen when she needed him to, offer solutions if she wanted him to and to always offer comfort without ever needing to be asked or prompted.

She pressed her temple to his, stepping a bit closer to whisper into his ear a little easier. "Spencer-"

Before she had even finished saying his name he asked in his quiet way, "You're going to leave, aren't you?"

"Did Morgan tell you?" She questioned, flashing back to the conversation they had had earlier that evening in Rossi's house.

"No. Your nails are growing out a bit. You've stopped chewing them. You're not on edge anymore because you've made a decision. And you've been quiet all night. You've been holding something back, watching everybody, waiting for the right moment to tell us something. Right?"

"Very perceptive, Reid. I thought we promised not to profile each other."

"Couldn't help it." He muttered, hand spasming slightly, nervously on the small of her back. "So you're leaving us, right?"

Reid had said 'us' but the slight waver in his voice implied that what he really meant was, "So you're leaving me, right?" Now who's doing the profiling? Said a voice in the back of Emily's mind.

Sighing apologetically, Emily gathered her thoughts and began. "Reid… You know what the first thing was that I noticed about you?" She could feel him shake his head numbly against her own. "I noticed your bravery. And immediately after that, your loyalty. Before I knew what a genius you were," She gave the back of his head an affectionate rub, "Before your intelligence I noticed your strength. I saw it in your eyes the first time we ever met.

"I admire you so much Reid. You are selfless and you are brave in the face of all danger. And Kid, I love that about you."

"Emily…" Reid's voice was heavy with tears.

"Just let me say what I gotta say, okay? I wanted to talk to you first because-well because of what happened the last time I…left." Both remembered vividly the emotional trauma that Reid had suffered after Emily faked her death. "Look, I know you Reid, I do. And, really, I'm not worried about you. You have so much ahead of you, you've been through so much and you've got everything going for you. Just… Just promise me that you'll talk to someone when you need to. Okay? Morgan, or JJ. Hell, you could call me. I'll pick up a call from you day or night. Don't close yourself off. Okay? And just… never stop being you. I love you and anyone who doesn't get you… Well, I don't have to give you the bully speech. Just-you deserve so much, and I love you and so does the rest of the team and anyone who doesn't love you for who you are isn't worth your time."

"Stay safe Emily. Don't go telling religious zealots that you can take a beating. Or running into buildings with bombs. Promise?"

"Yeah, Spencer," Emily said with a laugh I her voice. "I promise." Squeezing tight, they shared in a long hug before Spencer finally pulled back, wiping a few tears on his sleeve.

"I hate good-byes." Spencer let out an embarrassed sort of laugh.

"I know kid." She kissed his cheek. "But hey, it's not forever, okay? I'm not dying-this time. Okay? I'll come back, you'll visit, we'll talk on the phone or maybe you'll get over your technophobia enough to get a skype-" at this Spencer pulled a face and she laughed, "Or maybe not. Anyway, the point is you're not getting rid of me that easy."

And suddenly, Reid knew what to say. With a smile like a ghost from the past Reid recalled many late night foreign movie marathons he and Emily had shared and said, "À plus tard, Emily." See you later, Emily.

Emily nodded her approval, lost in the same fond memories as the young doctor. "Ahh, French, the language of love. Nice choice. Прощай." Good-bye.

 **A/N: okay, this is my first criminal minds fanfiction, so go easy on me. I really love Emily and I really love Spencer. I think Spener is one of the most complex characters with the richest relationships and that was something I explored a little here. It's not shippy, just a familial, friendly relationship.**

 **I was considering making this a series, showing how Emily said goodbye to everybody in the season 7 finale, "Run". Good idea? Not a a good idea? Please, please, please, review and or comment!**


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